Groundwater Protection
WQ Scientist recognized for database of underground wells

 

Picture this: An accurate map that pinpoints all the injection wells in Utah and across the Nation.

Front Row: Candace Cady, DWQ; Trang Le, EPA HQ;
Steve Pratt, EPA Region 8.

Back Row: Bob Smith, EPA HQ; Douglas Minter,
EPA Region 8; Carl Reeverts, EPA HQ; Kurt Hildebrant,
EPA Region 7; Roy Simon, EPA HQ.

Candace Cady, scientist with the Division of Water Quality’s Groundwater Protection Section, was recently recognized nationally by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for her work as the co-chair of the National Underground Injection Control (UIC) Data Management Steering Committee. She also is recognized for her participation on the first Integrated Project Team for the development of a national UIC database, and for leading Utah DEQ’s effort in flowing data to the national database – which provides a more efficient way of protecting the groundwater.

“She helped create a process for all of the states and EPA’s regions to electronically report the information to EPA’s national database,” said Roy Simon, associate branch chief for the Headquarters Infrastructure Branch, Office of Groundwater and Drinking Water for the U.S. EPA. “Candace helped create a national approach that allows every state and regional database system to report injection well information electronically.”

States are required to provide key information on the nature and use of injection wells to EPA as part of the federal Underground Injection Control Program authorized by the Safe Drinking Water Act. Utah will be one of the first state programs to meet this reporting requirement electronically.

Walt Baker, director of Water Quality, praised Cady for her work.

“Candace is putting Utah at the forefront of this effort. We value her work and proud that she was recognized nationally for it.”

In 2004, Cady worked with Bert Granberg of the Department of Technology Service’s Automated Geographic Reference Center to successfully obtain a $300,000 grant to develop a statewide database. As part of that, she was asked, along with Granberg, to participate on the first Integrated Project Team and to serve as the co-chair
of the National Data Management Steering Committee for the National Underground Injection Control Program.

“This committee serves in an advisory capacity to the EPA on matters, including among others, pertaining to how the data is going to be used,” said Cady. “I felt it was important to participate so Utah’s interests would be represented in the decision-making process.”

The committee, comprised of representatives from 11 organizations that included EPA regions and states, “assisted EPA in setting up a computer process to flow the data from the state to this national well-by-well database, which involves a very extensive process of linking the state information to a national database,” explained Simon.

After years of monthly conference calls, Cady resigned from the national committee in order to focus on Utah’s own database, which is nearly complete and will soon significantly reduce the amount of paperwork reported to EPA.

“The idea is to use this database as a daily management tool,” said Cady. “Its purpose is to be much more efficient by going electronically rather than paperwork.”

Simon puts it this way: “It’s like a river. Once the information flows it doesn’t stop.”